Archives for “local” tag

Don’t you often wish you could find a place you could really, truly find peace and quiet in? A location which would be worlds apart from the problems of everyday life but still within reach?

Peonia (pronounced Peh-ón-ee-ah, a Greek species of flower but also an incidental anagram of the Greek word for ‘Japan’) is a Zen tea and herbalism shop. It is so quiet and peaceful, even the tea menus have little “thank you for respecting the others and the shop by being quiet and relaxed!” signs. This might seem a little bit too New Age for you, depending on your tastes, but in my opinion Peonia has struck a good balance. I’ve brought many friends and not a small number of (first) dates to Peonia; you know you’re going to hit it off when they can savour the peace.

The ridiculously quiet atmosphere is perfect for enjoying your game of go, a good book (including from their own spirituality collection) and, of course, the wide variety of exotic and unique teas and other beverages brought there by the depths of Asia and other parts of the world, as well as vegan sweets and pastries.

It’s not rare for me to not be able to think of a place to go when I’m in Thisseio. Sometimes everything just feels the same. Years and years of visiting Peonia have taught me that the unique is often to be found in the “mundane”. Athens and the world need more places like this.

One of the more interesting effects of the financial crisis in Greece has been that a whole lot of bakeries have found fertile ground to open their bread-making business to the public. However, contrary to what one would expect from this development, many of these new bakeries have come to specialise in the higher range of prices and respective quality. La Bella Fornarina is where you can get the very best.

This is where we get our daily bread from. My mother insists on always buying the gluten-free dinkel for our everyday needs: “It’s like medicine for your body!”, she tells me when I express my concerns on buying such expensive bread so often. But to be perfectly honest, I can’t complain: this is some of the best bread anyone can ever hope to get their hands on. And it’s not just the bread, oh no: the sesame koulouria half dunked in bitter chocolate, the cereal cookies, the cinammon twists, the heavenly spinach pies and sandwiches (great selection for vegetarians too!)… They also carry traditional Greek pasta and related goods.

This bakery might be far from the most affordable around but one thing’s for certain: you get your money’s worth and exceptional food. You’ll find it in the central square of Nea Smyrni right next to tram stop Agias Foteinis.

You’re having your little walk in Eksarheia. You walk outside Homesick and are impressed by the decoration and stylistic choices. You enter only to find old and newer books, old cameras and records, sleeves and players adorning the place, as well as relevant posters, a pleasant and interesting mish-mash of mostly retro, rock & roll and punk styles. Impressed with the details of the decoration, you decide to stay, just like my girlfriend and I did.

Were we in for a pleasant surprise! I ordered a pint of Alpha (€ 4 there; I’m being consistent in comparing beer prices everywhere I go!) and Dafni ordered a milkshake. That one was good but the best was the rusks, olives and bits of cheese that came as a side treat with my drink! It’s only rarely you might see such kinds of well-cared for freebies. Extra points for Homesick.

Another unexpected happy occurrence was talking with owner Damianos. He was very friendly and open when I asked to talk with him about the place he’s running.

Homesick is located very close to the central square of Eksarheia; check out the map.

Mousiko Kafeneio (roughly music café) is more than just my neighbourhood café-bar; it’s a genuinely awesome spot, somewhere you can expect the cool people to hang out at. Always packed, it has the perfect atmosphere (deciding whether to upload a photograph of the interior or the exterior and the time of day was tougher than I thought). It’s at the perfect location, on a pedestrian zone close to the neighbourhood central square, playing music right up my alley, throwing parties and featuring live bands every so often… I’d say it has just about everything going for it, really.

The only problem is that it’s so close to where I live I can literally sit in my balcony and count the people sitting at Mousiko Kafeneio at any one time. That’s the only reason I don’t go there as often as I would otherwise; it almost doesn’t count as going out!

That said, I would come here much more often if I didn’t live in Nea Smyrni. I’d suggest you do the same, preferably closer to the evening when the square is livelier and the colour of the light is prettier. Also keep in mind that their coffees all go for € 2 and we have ourselves a winner. Gimme a shout if you’re in the neighbourhood and I just might drop by; at the end of the day, all I’m looking for is an excuse!

Tram stop Agias Foteinis will get you far. Goes well with a walk in the Alsos.

Among the blocks of flats, the avenues and the urban “growth” lies a different kind of growth. One that seems to be frozen in time together with its surroundings.

Rema Pikrodafnis is one of the few remaining relevantly untouched streams in Athens. You can see the areas it runs through by clicking here. Polluted waters, illegal dwellings tacked on the stream itself, an overgrowth of reeds everywhere… It’s a forgotten, completely different world. You’ll find such things as chicken coops, tin shacks, tortoises, frogs and great views over the stream from the winding, labyrinthine roads that go parallel to it. Some might say it’s not an interesting sight and might wonder why anyone would want to visit a place such as this. I for one love this seemingly abandonded part of the city and really think it’s a symbol of the part of Greece a lot of people want to forget or gloss over.

It’s a great walk any time of the day. I suggest you bring something good to listen to while walking or biking along the wild vegetation. The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle in audiobook format was my choice and it fit strangely well with the desolateness.

To get to the lower part of the stream which is most easily accessible via local transport, catch a tram and get off at stop Achilleos. Go down Eleftheriou Venizelou past the shops and sure enough you’ll see the first reeds in the distance. The rest is up to you.